Samata Balika Vidyalaya – School for Girls

Samata Balika Vidyalaya was established in Bhagalpur Block (population 1,25,000)of Deoria District, Uttar Pradesh. The drop-out rate among girl children in middle schools was nearly 60%. There was no girl-only school in the block and families were reluctant to girl children to co-ed schools. This gap has been fulfilled by the school which now has a strength of 200 girls in 4 classes from the 9th to the 12th. The school has a motivated group of teachers and has been consistently turning out impressive results at the board exams with the 12th standard results being the best in the area.

The school faces a financial crunch as it does not charge any fees from girls who are drawn from backward and poor families. A few more subjects need to be taught, extra-curricular activities need to be increased and the infrastructure needs to be upgraded. There is a need to set up laboratories and strengthen the library to help introduce teaching in subjects like Science, Math and English, for which there is a persistent demand. This will require an infusion of funds.﻿